I know, I know. That headline was way too easy. But…so was this series.
Danny Briere scored the game winning goal all of 3:16 into the game, an extremely pretty French connection on a spinaround pass from Claude Giroux.
Not content to let Briere have all the fun, Giroux added two goals of his own to the scoreboard in the second period, giving the Flyers more than enough cushion to hang on for the 3-0 Game 5 win.
Claude Giroux–he’s really good.
And so the Flyers win this first round series in 5, in a #7 over #2 upset that really shouldn’t be considered much of a shock given how dominant the Flyers were against his New Jersey during the season. Most everyone expected the Devils to put up a better fight, and even I relented from my initial gut of Flyers in 5 during our series preview on BSH Radio. But the Devils just didn’t have the fight, the grit, or the finishging ability to really make this a series. And the Flyers did. In spades.
The Flyers are playing well. Really well. Really, really really well. This could be the start of something pretty special.
Your bullet points on this final game in the Devils’ 2009-10 season:
- Brian Boucher is definitely the MVP of this series. He thoroughly outplayed the most prolific goaltender of all time, Martin Brodeur. And faced with a 3-1 lead against the Devils for the second time in his career, he thoroughly exorcised any remaining demons from 2000 with an emphatic 28 save shutout. What was considered the Flyers biggest question mark going into these playoffs has become a huge exclamation point.
- We love Ian Laperriere for throwing his body at every possible shot, but it just sucks to see him get hurt after the game was already out of reach on what amounts to an extremely optional and extremely risky maneuver. Speedy recovery, please.
- Ilya Kovalchuk’s career playoff record is now 1-8. Some superstar.
- The last three playoff series the Flyers have won were against the Atlantic Division champions (Devils), Northeast Division champions (Canadiens), and Southeast Division champions (Capitals).
- Aren’t you glad the Flyers won that shootout against the Rangers?
If you have any inclination whatsoever to go to any of the Flyers’ away games second round series, which will almost certainly be in Washington, buy those tickets ASAP. Like, tonight. Or at worst, early Friday. The Caps will almost certainly clinch tomorrow night, and once they do tickets will be almost impossible to get.
After the jump: questions answered, comment of the night, and the after party.
Questions Answered:
- Can David Laliberte not look like an AHL player tonight? He looked like an AHL player only in that he was not especially visible during an NHL game, playing only 5:32 despite allegedly being on the first line. But he was fine.
Will Ville Leino impress those folks who have been clamoring for his return to the lineup? He, too, was fine. Unremarkable. Good enough.
Can the Flyers cut back on the penalties? A little, but not enough. Let’s hope they call the next series differently.
Is this the last game of the Devils season? Yessir.
Comment of the Night:
Jesus Powe, can you be any more of a BAMF —JpH89
Go Flyers. Keep on going.
